The Cowboys' owner inched closer to that announcement last week. But while he once again failed to utter the magic words, his actions left no doubt.

On Friday, the club signed Paul Pasqualoni as an assistant coach. The hire would not have been made if Phillips didn't want Pasqualoni as part of his staff for next season.

Jones concedes the transaction speaks to the fact that Phillips will return.

"I think it does," Jones said. "Certainly, I'm pleased with the job Wade is doing and has done. I certainly am interested in building on what we've got going right now in the positive way.

"I think it would clearly say, if you sort through the circumstances of Paul's hire, that it's a go here for Wade. But again, we haven't sat down and talked about it."

Phillips is in the final year of his contract with a club option for 2010. Jones has not exercised that option, and both men have said it won't be discussed until the season is over.

But symbolically, it can be argued that Jones exercised the option the moment he hired Pasqualoni to coach the defensive line. Why hire an assistant Phillips wants if Jones doesn't intend to retain him as head coach?

"Well, you know, we're just doing what's best for this football team," Phillips said. "I think Jerry would have done that anyway.

"Conclude whatever you want to conclude, I guess."

The spark for all this came Thursday when Todd Grantham told the club he had accepted an offer to become the defensive coordinator for the University of Georgia. Phillips told Jones he thought Pasqualoni would be the ideal replacement. Less than 30 minutes later, the hire was made.

The two men will work together until the Cowboys' playoff run ends and Grantham departs. Phillips joked that except for his son Wes, who is the Cowboys' quality control/offensive assistant, he's never been part of such a swift hiring.

Phillips has led the Cowboys to two NFC East titles in his three seasons as coach. His 33-15 regular-season record in that span represents the highest winning percentage (.687) of any coach in club history.

The blemish on this resume had been Phillips' inability to win in the postseason. He was 0-4 for his career as a head coach before the team's 34-14 win over Philadelphia in the wild-card round.

Jones gave strong indications before that victory that Phillips would return. The owner said Phillips had shown him this season, more than any other, that he is tough and resilient. Jones said he saw Phillips become more comfortable in his role over the final quarter of the regular season.

After the Cowboys beat the Eagles for their first playoff win in 12 seasons, Jones echoed the comments of several players who said that Phillips was the team's defensive MVP.

So, why not go ahead and make it official? Jones pointed out before the playoff game with Philadelphia that he is superstitious and the team was playing well. He didn't want to tamper with that.

And remember, the option rests with the Cowboys. In Jones' mind, it doesn't matter if he exercises it now or a week from now.

"Every time I talk about this, I have to remind us that for all practical purposes, Wade is under contract," Jones said.